My Sister's House

Just had the most wonderful weekend with family! It was food and fun! And my sister made this deeeeeeelicius lasagna!! And guess what, it was HEALTHY, LOWFAT and SO GOOOOD!!
Oh and the best part of all, NOT labor intensive because it was in the CROCKPOT!! I couldn't contain this excitement to myself, so I had to share with you! Crockpot Vegetable Lasagna, ENJOY!! (and check out,at the bottom of the page, the low calorie count for a nice big slice, it just gets better!)

CROCKPOT VEGETABLE LASAGNA

Ingredients

• 1 large egg
• 1 15- to 16-ounce container part-skim ricotta
• 1 5-ounce package baby spinach, coarsely chopped
• 3 large or 4 small portobello mushroom caps, gills removed (see Tip), halved and thinly sliced
• 1 small zucchini, quartered lengthwise and thinly sliced
• 1 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes
• 1 28-ounce can diced tomatoes
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• Pinch of crushed red pepper (optional)
• 15 whole-wheat lasagna noodles (about 12 ounces), uncooked
• 3 cups shredded part-skim mozzarella, divided

Preparation

1. Combine egg, ricotta, spinach, mushrooms and zucchini in a large bowl.
2. Combine crushed and diced tomatoes and their juice, garlic and crushed red pepper (if using) in a medium bowl.
3. Generously coat a 6-quart or larger slow cooker with cooking spray. Spread 1 1/2 cups of the tomato mixture in the slow cooker. Arrange 5 noodles over the sauce, overlapping them slightly and breaking into pieces to cover as much of the sauce as possible. Spread half of the ricotta-vegetable mixture over the noodles and firmly pat down, then spoon on 1 1/2 cups sauce and sprinkle with 1 cup mozzarella. Repeat the layering one more time, starting with noodles. Top with a third layer of noodles. Evenly spread the remaining tomato sauce over the noodles. Set aside the remaining 1 cup mozzarella in the refrigerator.
4. Put the lid on the slow cooker and cook on High for 2 hours or on Low for 4 hours. Turn off the slow cooker, sprinkle the reserved mozzarella on the lasagna, cover and let stand for 10 minutes to melt the cheese.

Tips & Notes

• Make Ahead Tip: Equipment: 6-quart (or larger) slow cooker

• Tip: The dark gills found on the underside of a portobello mushroom cap are edible, but can turn a dish an unappealing gray color. If you like, gently scrape the gills off with a spoon.

Nutrition

Per serving: 414 calories; 14 g fat ( 8 g sat , 4 g mono ); 63 mg cholesterol; 48 g carbohydrates; 0 g added sugars; 28 g protein; 7 g fiber; 641 mg sodium; 829 mg potassium.